


Hunt, Find, Eat

by tuesday



Category: Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Brief Crossover, Canon-Typical Cannibalism, Canon-Typical Violence, M/M, Other, Outer Space, Space Adventure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2020-01-05 11:30:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18365111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuesday/pseuds/tuesday
Summary: Venom's previous host has been kidnapped.  Time for a space adventure to rescue him!





	Hunt, Find, Eat

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cupidsbow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cupidsbow/gifts).



> I've taken some characters (sort of) and story elements from First Host and story elements, lore, and a character from the new Captain Marvel movie, though you shouldn't need to know either for this story, and it diverges wildly from the actual comics in pretty much every way, plus adds a bunch of stuff that is neither comics nor Venom nor MCU canon.
> 
> Words spoken aloud are in quotation marks. Thoughts projected between Eddie and Venom are in italics.
> 
> Thank you so much to Duckmoles and Natcat for your help with this!
> 
> Author reveals eta: Redating finally for author reveals. :D

"Do you miss it?" Eddie asked, home, in bed. He didn't have to specify with Venom, could think of space, of home, of feelings of warm nostalgia for how things once were, memories of the past with a sheen of gloss smoothing over the cracks.

"This is better," Venom said, and with the words came the feeling that this _was_ home, that Eddie was warm and cozy and a perfect fit.

"But do you miss it?" Eddie wanted to know.

"Yes," Venom said slowly. "I do."

They shared memories all the time, Venom swimming through the streams of Eddie's thoughts, the pools of childhood memories and the quicksilver flash floods of sudden sense memory. It didn't all go one way, Venom helping Eddie learn how to float on top of a memory, peering in, or to dive deep, experiencing it like it was firsthand. He was like a kid with floaties when he tried on his own, the lifeguard on stand by, but he was getting better all the time.

"What was it like?" Eddie asked.

In return, he got cold, hunger, loneliness. But he also got the stars, pinpricks of light picked out overhead, brighter and closer than the few that made it through the atmosphere and light pollution of the city. The sky was black velvet, and the stars glittering jewels strewn across it. It was beautiful.

He thought it was a shame he'd never get to see it.

—

Eddie was on his way back to the apartment, groceries in hand, when he was stopped by a complete stranger, an old man who looked like he'd been sleeping rough for weeks. "Sorry, man, I don't have any change," Eddie told him. "I've got a sandwich here if you need it."

"Change is not what's needed, nor food." The old man looked him up and down with a creepily intent stare. "The help of your symbiote, on the other hand, would be much appreciated."

"Excuse me?" Eddie said.

Venom piped up, sudden and excited: _Eddie, we know this person._

 _No,_ Eddie projected back. _We don't._

_I do._

"Tel-Kar needs you," the man said.

"How can we help?" Venom said.

 _We are definitely talking about this later,_ Eddie thought, because he wasn't about to disagree with himself out loud.

"He's been taken." The old man, lips pressed together, looked grim. "We're going to get him back."

—

The old man turned out to be neither old, nor a man—not human at all. They got back to Eddie's apartment, and the instant the door was closed, Venom was pushing a head out excitedly.

"M'Lanz! Who took Tel-Kar? We will hunt them, we will find them, and we will _eat_ them."

The guise of an old man melted away in favor of a pointy-eared, green-skinned lady. "A squadron of Kree found us. We were separated." Her fists clenched. "The last I saw him, they were dragging him away."

 _More aliens. Okay,_ Eddie thought and got a brief flash of amusement back from Venom. Aloud, he said, "How do you know he's still alive?"

M'Lanz's expression was fierce, all flashing eyes and drawn back lips. "He's alive." She looked down. "If nothing else, he has information they want."

"And how are we going to find him?" Eddie asked.

M'Lanz nodded toward Venom's head. "They were bonded. Everyone knows a Klyntar can always find their way back to their host." She glanced at Eddie. "Your help is unnecessary. Venom and I will move faster without you."

"No." It was spoken as one, Venom and Eddie both.

"We won't be separated," Venom said, holding their hand over their heart. "But we will help you."

—

Eddie made arrangements to be gone for a while—staying freelance worked out in at least this one way, because there was no way he'd have been able to explain this to a boss—and delivered his spare apartment key to Anne to water his plants.

"You're going into space," Anne said flatly.

"Yeah, kind of," Eddie said.

"To find Venom's previous host, who's been kidnapped."

"Looks that way."

"Venom, who you let me believe was dead."

"Look, can you do it or not?" Eddie asked.

"You are not getting off the hook that easily, Eddie Brock." Ooo, full name. She was mad. Eddie couldn't wait to see what she thought when she found out Eddie was dating Venom, too. Anne jabbed a finger into his shoulder. "When you get back, you are telling me all about this."

"Thanks, Annie. You're the best!"

Eddie gave her the spare key and got back on his bike. Anne was smiling from the door, shaking her head. Eddie waved and hit the gas.

—

M'Lanz had a ship outside the city. It was a little two-seater that didn't look like it was air-worthy, much less would make it into space. It looked like someone had put a dome over the cockpit of a carnival ride's fake plane, like it should be suspended by a large metal arm and never rise above fifteen feet in the air. Even the controls looked like they didn't do anything, odd little crystals and a couple little blue screens.

 _Looks can be deceiving._ Venom sounded—felt—amused. _Put on your seatbelt._

"Hold on. The suspension's off, and leaving the atmosphere is always a little rough." M'Lanz didn't sound too concerned.

The ship rocketed off the ground like the world's worst roller coaster. It felt like it was going to shake apart. First, Eddie was pressed into his seat with the force of their acceleration, then jolted every which way and only kept in place by the full body straps. It was hard to worry about the sudden height when Eddie was sure they were going to die by sudden decompression when the ship finally shook itself apart. There was an awful roaring, rattling sound, and if not for Venom, Eddie was sure he'd have chipped a tooth from his teeth clattering together.

After a few terrifying minutes that lasted far too long, everything stopped. Eddie opened his eyes. Venom had been laughing at him, but the laughter cut off abruptly. Venom tipped their head back to stare out the canopy. The sky was dark. The stars were bright. The moon was huge off to their left.

"Say goodbye," M'Lanz said. She turned the ship so that Earth was a blue circle above them. "It may be a while until we return."

It was _so far down_. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Don't let your human throw up in my shuttle," M'Lanz said.

"He is fine," Venom said in a dismissive tone.

 _Stop embarrassing us,_ Venom thought.

 _Then let me close my eyes_ , Eddie thought. _At least until I can't see anything like ground anymore. You can make your own if you really want to see it so bad._

Grudgingly, Venom ceded back control. Eddie squeezed his eyes shut.

"I think that's enough goodbyes for me," Eddie said.

"Good, because we're almost to the ship."

"We're on a ship."

"You're sure you want to bring him?" M'Lanz said. Eddie knew she wasn't talking to him.

"C-53 is not spacefaring," Venom chided. To Eddie, he said, _But you have access to my memories. You should know better._

 _Your last ship was a comet._ Venom really had no room to talk. Besides, it wasn't like Eddie had seen them all. Venom had a deep ocean of memories from before he met Eddie, and Eddie had barely graduated past the floaties stage of swimming through them. He hadn't even seen Venom's home planet in the memories.

Venom felt troubled. _You do not need to._

_Why? Are we going there?_

A feeling of negation, of grief sharply cut off. _That will not be possible._

"Brace for docking," M'Lanz said.

—

The ship wasn't huge, but it was bigger than Eddie's apartment. There were five compartments in berthing all crowded with bunks, an engine room, the cockpit, and a small mess, plus a large-ish room that Eddie thought was supposed to be a community gathering space, as well as the section with the shuttles. There were also seven more green-skinned aliens.

 _Skrull,_ Venom corrected. Looking at the small crowd, he radiated concern. He asked, "Where are the spawn?"

"The Kree took them, too," M'Lanz said quietly.

"We will find them," Venom promised. His voice reverberated with menace.

"We will," M'Lanz confirmed.

—

It took them a while to return to the scene of the abduction. Earth wasn't exactly the next planet over. They'd come to get Venom because they were truly desperate. Once they got back to the small farming planet M'Lanz and her group had been ambushed on, Venom would be able to pick up the trail. In the meantime, Venom and Eddie were given their own compartment.

"I wouldn't want to put anyone out. We can always share," Eddie said.

The little old lady who'd led them to their berth shook her head. "No one's using this one."

Venom froze Eddie's vocal cords before he could say, _But there are eight of you._

"We thank you," Venom said.

 _There are only five rooms,_ Eddie thought.

 _Look at the bunks,_ Venom said. Every room could hold at least eight people.

When they were alone, Eddie wondered aloud, not expecting an answer, "How many people did the Kree take?"

 _Too many,_ Venom thought. _Always too many._

—

It was hard to sleep on the ship. The mattress was weird, spongy and rubbery, like lying on a giant mushroom cap. When Eddie turned off the lights, it was pitch black, no street lights streaming through the window to illuminate the bed. The ship gave off a faint hum.

"What was he like?" Eddie asked. "Your last host."

Venom pushed back a hundred conflicting impressions. Tel-Kar was selfish and caring and sweet and foolish and sharp and loving and kind. He was ruthless and giving, willing to give up everything for the right cause. He was terribly weak and frightfully strong. He was a soft hand covered in mail. He was an empty heart papered over with hope. He was the words, "You're nothing but a tool," and the impulsive decision to let a child go who was an enemy of his people.

Venom's love for him was a whirlpool sucking Eddie under. His admiration was a geyser that burned to the bone. His resentment ran deep as ocean trenches. Sensing that Eddie was floundering, Venom pulled back, the tide of memories and emotions retreating.

 _Complicated,_ Venom thought.

Eddie hummed.

 _Rest,_ Venom thought. He pushed out a hand to pet at Eddie's hair. _We will need our strength._

—

They didn't actually land on the planet. Venom took them to the cockpit when they reached orbit, tipped their head to the side, and, maybe ten minutes later, pointed. "That way."

They took the pilot's seat, and Venom tapped in coordinates. M'Lanz stood rigid behind them. Another young woman sat in the co-pilot's seat, but didn't interfere. There was a pull like a current.

They followed it.

—

They ended up on another ship that doubled as a space station.

"Infiltration?" asked the pilot.

Venom shook their head. They suited up. "Attack."

"Hunt them, find them, eat them. That was the plan, wasn't it?" M'Lanz said. She hefted some kind of retro-futuristic laser gun. "I won't eat them, but I can put a few down for you."

Venom's smile was all teeth. "We can move faster without you." He inclined his head. "Wait briefly. Follow the bodies."

They took one of the shuttles.

"You do know how to fly one of these things, right?" Eddie asked.

Venom sent a feeling like fondness. That wasn't an answer.

"Right?" Eddie repeated.

Venom crashed the shuttle into one of the other ship's docking bays.

What followed wasn't one of Eddie's better days. Kree came in a variety, including blue, but they all tasted terrible.

 _Why is it always the heads?_ Eddie thought.

 _They are the most nutritious,_ Venom said. _And the crunch is delightful._

What followed was one of Eddie's best days. There were cells full of prisoners, including small children, who insisted on clambering up Venom's legs to perch on his broad shoulders, every single one of them grateful for the rescue.

There was a lot, okay? It was a lot.

It was too much when they reached where Tel-Kar was being kept. He wasn't in great shape. He was also very, very blue.

 _Tel-Kar is a Kree?_ Eddie thought.

"A conqueror. An oppressor. … A friend." Venom's voice was soft, thoughtful. He didn't want to be separated. He said, "Be right back."

Their hand reached out to touch Tel-Kar's broken face. Eddie withdrew it, empty and alone.

"Venom?" Eddie said.

Tel-Kar's face shifted into a smile. It was unpleasant to watch it pop into place.

"Venom. You came."

"Always," Venom replied with Tel-Kar's voice.

Behind Eddie, M'Lanz was crying. She said, "You self-sacrificing fool." Then she was pushing in front of Eddie to pull Tel-Kar and Venom into her arms.

—

Tel-Kar was weak. Venom was apologetic—or at least, as apologetic as Venom got, which wasn't very—but he said he needed to stay a little while longer. On the way back to the ship, he kept stopping to snack.

"There was a lot of damage," Venom said in an oddly defensive tone.

"Eat as many Kree as you like," M'Lanz said.

"Please stop encouraging him to eat the dead," Tel-Kar said.

"Would you rather it was someone living?" Eddie asked, one part curious to two parts rueful. He knew how Venom felt about carrion.

"I did not miss this," Tel-Kar said.

—

Eddie and Venom's room was filled with people. Eddie got to keep his bunk, but even with the snuffles and snores of a dozen other people crammed into bunks with each other, it was too quiet. Eddie couldn't sleep.

He found Tel-Kar curled up with M'Lanz in the rec room with some of the children. Venom had shifted part of himself out to act as a blanket for them. Tel-Kar was also awake, glittering eyes watching the kids sleep. Eddie stretched out beside them. Venom's soft, fabric-like folds reached out to envelop him, too.

Eddie fell asleep with his head on M'Lanz's shoulder, his boyfriend wrapped around him.

—

They met up on a red, dusty planet with a woman Tel-Kar called Vers, who glowed when she saw Venom, but calmed down when she saw M'Lanz and the rest. Her face softened into a smile when all the kids came pouring out of the ship to enjoy fresh air and sunlight.

"Yeah," she told one of the elderly Skrull. "I know a safe place for you." She looked over at Tel-Kar. "But are you sure you want the Butcher to come?"

"I've changed, Vers," Tel-Kar said tiredly.

"Still toting one of your stolen Klyntar," Vers said. "And you know that's not my real name."

"You didn't call me by mine." Tel-Kar sighed. "Venom is here as a friend. The only reason he's not home by now is he's hovering, because he was worried about you."

"Where is home now?" she asked. It didn't sound like idle curiosity.

"Here." Eddie waved a hand. "With me."

Vers's eyes narrowed. "You're not Kree."

"I'm not," Eddie agreed.

She pointed at Eddie. She was starting to glow again. "Where did you get a human?"

M'Lanz stepped in the middle. "Venom was on C-53, but he was the only one of his kind there."

"The others are on a comet," Venom said in dismissive tone Eddie knew meant, _That is someone else's problem now._

"You left a bunch of starving Klyntar on a comet?" Vers asked.

"Hey, they had a ship the last time I saw them," Tel-Kar said.

Vers pointed at Tel-Kar this time. "Give the Klyntar back to his new host. _I'll_ take them home."

Tel-Kar shook Eddie's hand, both hands clasped around Eddie's right. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Eddie and Venom said as one.

Vers got the Skrull set up. Then she bundled Eddie and Venom into her own ship for a long trip back to Earth made longer by her spending the entire time interrogating Venom over the Klyntar with Eddie's own occasional interjections. About the only information she gave back was that her name was Carol.

"What were you thinking?" she said. "You know Earth is under my protection. Even the Kree don't go there anymore."

"We were hungry," Venom said with a shrug.

"Desperate," Eddie said thoughtfully, feeling what Venom hadn't said.

"I guess I know my next refugee project," Carol said. "Okay, tell me everything. I need to know where to find them and what condition they're probably in."

—

Carol landed outside the city, putting down near where Eddie had hidden his bike. She went in with them.

"It's been forever since I had decent food. I brought you back; you're buying me dinner."

She gave a little whoop at the bike. Eddie gave in to the inevitable and let her drive.

—

Eddie offered to drive Carol back after she'd consumed half her weight in cheeseburgers, and she winked at them. Her smile was mischievous. "That won't be necessary."

Then she glowed again and took off, flying out of the diner's parking lot.

"And she's human?" Eddie asked Venom. "You're sure?"

 _As human as you are,_ Venom said.

Considered that was followed by memories of them suiting up to fight bad guys, that … wasn't exactly a definitive answer.

Eddie shoved his hands in his pockets. "So. Space."

Venom gave a hum of agreement.

"Was it everything you remembered?"

The feeling Eddie got in return was snarled, complicated, a tangled skein. Mostly it was sad, full of regret. _Yes._

Eddie heaved a sigh, climbing back on his bike. It was time to go home.

Venom agreed, his thoughts warm this time, like slipping into a hot bath at the end of the day. _Home._

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't find a good place to include it, but his last host giving up everything and throwing his lot in with an enemy of his people for the sake of love was very inspirational to Venom and explained part of why he so easily went from, "Cooperate and you might survive," to, "Excuse me while I trash this rocket to live happily ever after with my new boyfriend."
> 
> Captain Marvel's "let's take an antagonist and make them a good guy" approach, meanwhile, was very inspirational to me when it came to writing this story.


End file.
